GPU Showdown

Radeon 550XvsGeForce RTX 4090

The GeForce RTX 4090 is a top-tier card for enthusiasts and creators who need maximum performance, while the Radeon 550X is a basic entry-level GPU for casual office work and light media playback.

AMD Radeon 550X
2 GB · 50W
VS
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090
24 GB · 450W
AMD

Radeon 550X

GCN 4.0 · TSMC 14 nm · 2019

4score
3/ 5
0 votes
VRAM
2 GB
TDP
50W
CUDA Cores
512
Boost Clock
1218 MHz

As an Amazon Associate we may earn from qualifying purchases.

NVIDIA

GeForce RTX 4090

Ada Lovelace · TSMC 5 nm · 2022

92score
3.8/ 5
0 votes
VRAM
24 GB
TDP
450W
Shaders
16,384
Boost Clock
2520 MHz

As an Amazon Associate we may earn from qualifying purchases.

Aggregate Performance

Overall Performance Score

A unified score from combined synthetic and real-world benchmarks. 100 represents the fastest consumer GPU available.

550X
4
RTX 4090Winner
92
RTX 4090 leads by 2200.0% in aggregate performance.
Where they rank overall
#2RTX 509094
#3RTX 409092
#4RTX 508086
#128RX 570X5
#129550X4
#1305404
Technical Specifications

Side-by-Side Specs

Every detail compared. Highlighted cells indicate the leading value for that metric.

Specs550XRTX 4090
General
Process Node14 nm5 nm
Memory
VRAM2 GB24 GB
Memory TypeGDDR5GDDR6X
Memory Bus128-bit384-bit
Bandwidth112 GB/s1010 GB/s
Compute
CUDA Cores51216,384
TMUs32512
ROPs16176
Boost Clock1218 MHz2520 MHz
FP321.247 TF82.58 TF
Power
TDP50450
Power Connectors1x 16-pin
Display
Max Resolution7680×43207680×4320
Display Outputs1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
Verdict

Which should you buy?

Winner overall

The GeForce RTX 4090 is the clear winner for anyone needing top-tier performance, while the Radeon 550X falls far behind.

Best value

For budget buyers, the Radeon 550X is the smarter pick because it costs much less for basic tasks than the expensive GeForce RTX 4090.

When the other wins

The Radeon 550X is the right choice for an older office PC that only needs basic display output and low power draw.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Is the 550X better than the RTX 4090?

Overall the RTX 4090 is the stronger graphics card: it ranks higher in our aggregate performance score (92 vs 4 out of 100), so it leads the 550X in most workloads.

How much faster is the RTX 4090 than the 550X?

Based on our aggregated benchmark scores the RTX 4090 is roughly 2200% faster than the 550X overall. The real-world gap varies by game, resolution and settings.

Which should you buy, the 550X or the RTX 4090?

If you want the most performance, pick the RTX 4090. If the 550X is meaningfully cheaper where you shop, it can be the better value for similar real-world results — check current prices and the full spec comparison above before deciding.